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Louisville City Council adopts South Boulder Road plan

After years of drafts and revisions — many of which were made in the past two weeks — Louisville City Council on Tuesday night voted unanimously to adopt the South Boulder Road Small Area Plan.

The plan, which has proven controversial since its conception in 2013, includes the creation of development regulations, identifying infrastructure improvements and locating areas for public spaces for the corridor, based on input from the public.

Earlier this month, councilmembers voted to table the resolution to adopt the plan until Tuesday's meeting. Staff had requested that councilmembers provide direction on any desired changes to the plan before it be brought back for potential approval.

During the meeting, councilmembers pored over the plan's language and revised details before voting.

Much of the discussion involved issues regarding residential special review use, building height, intersections — including the Main Street Crossing/underpass — and approved development.

Under the new plan, the allowance for residential as a special review use in Commercial Community and Commercial Business zone districts has been removed, according to city documents.

"We want to allow and encourage redevelopment at existing densities," said Mayor Pro Tem Jeff Lipton. "We just don't want to open the door for redevelopment above the density."

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Language in the plan regarding building height, open space considerations and concerns with an underpass on Main Street were updated before the council voted to adopt the resolution.

According to the 20-year cumulative fiscal impact, the total revenue for the project will amount to $66.9 million; total expenditures will amount to $54.2 million, leaving a net fiscal impact of $12.7 million.

The South Boulder Road area began being annexed into Louisville in the late 1970s. Development occurred intermittently, and by the time the 2013 Comprehensive Plan update was adopted, the area ranged from undeveloped fields to sites undergoing redevelopment.

"This is a big step," said Mayor Bob Muckle at the meeting's conclusion. "We've been working on this a long time."

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